83 SC Euro upgrades or swap?
11-25-2003 | 08:53 PM
#1
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Joined: Jan 2002
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From: The Woodlands, Tx
83 SC Euro upgrades or swap?
I have an 83 Euro SC Cabriolet that I have had for about 9 years. I am moving from Michigan to Texas in a couple weeks and the car will finally be able to be my daily driver!!! Currently has 78k. The motor is basically stock with the typical safety mods (pressure fed tensioners, etc.) The 915 tranny is really sensitive to anyone driving it but me and one of the syncros is acting up. I was thinking this year is the year for motor upgrades or a swap. Any recommendations? What would give the most bang for the buck, adding speed parts to my existing engine or swapping in something newer? Thanks!!
11-26-2003 | 03:12 AM
#2
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Joined: Apr 2002
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From: Kirkland, WA
A Euro 3.0 with that mileage should work great for daily use! Personally, I would be happy with that for a daily driver. If you must swap the engine, I would skip the 3.2 and go right to a 3.6 964/993 engine. The 3.2 would be an easier swap, but the U.S. 3.2 would be of little gain over your engine.
If I were in your shoes, I would get an SSI Exhaust, tune up and valve adjustment, freshen up the tranny, and enjoy! If you get tired of the performance of that setup, I think you would be money ahead to get a newer 911 with a 3.6 or turbo!
Good Luck!
Jason
1977 911s 3.2 Coupe
If I were in your shoes, I would get an SSI Exhaust, tune up and valve adjustment, freshen up the tranny, and enjoy! If you get tired of the performance of that setup, I think you would be money ahead to get a newer 911 with a 3.6 or turbo!
Good Luck!
Jason
1977 911s 3.2 Coupe
11-26-2003 | 04:04 AM
#3
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The first question you need to ask yourself is "what's the target HP?"
If you don't want too much hp an upgrade is usually the way to go; if you want a lot a swap is usually more cost effective. If you can choose a target HP you can figure out what would be require to get their with your motor vs what a swap would cost. Given that I always want lots of power, a swap usually makes sense.
I'd hazard a rough guess that with most porsche motors there is a thresh-hold around 120% of stock power. You can get about that figure somewhat cost-effectively for the average motor (less with some, more with turbos), but beyond this you need to worry about spending real money and hurting reliability.
The other way to work this, obviously, is to start with a budget and work backwards. Basically if you think you can spend enough to get a 3.6 motor with chips and exhaust installed it will be pretty hard to beat with street-able upgrades to your 3.0.
If you don't want too much hp an upgrade is usually the way to go; if you want a lot a swap is usually more cost effective. If you can choose a target HP you can figure out what would be require to get their with your motor vs what a swap would cost. Given that I always want lots of power, a swap usually makes sense.
I'd hazard a rough guess that with most porsche motors there is a thresh-hold around 120% of stock power. You can get about that figure somewhat cost-effectively for the average motor (less with some, more with turbos), but beyond this you need to worry about spending real money and hurting reliability.
The other way to work this, obviously, is to start with a budget and work backwards. Basically if you think you can spend enough to get a 3.6 motor with chips and exhaust installed it will be pretty hard to beat with street-able upgrades to your 3.0.
11-26-2003 | 10:34 AM
#5
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Joined: May 2003
Posts: 117
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From: Edmonton, AB, Canada
I echo Jason's comments.
Your existing motor should run for another 100,000+ miles yet. If upgrading to a 3.6, might want to consider the outlay vs. resale value. To go to a 3.6, you have to change out not just the motor, but also change out/modify some of the ancillary systems as well (engine management, cooling, tranny, etc.). In my opinion, its better to upgrade the car rather than just the motor.
Regarding the SSI exhaust, it provides an extra 23 hp for about $1,000, which is massive return on investment. Its also an investment that can be removed and resold, as there are lots of people looking for SSI. I'd start there.
Your existing motor should run for another 100,000+ miles yet. If upgrading to a 3.6, might want to consider the outlay vs. resale value. To go to a 3.6, you have to change out not just the motor, but also change out/modify some of the ancillary systems as well (engine management, cooling, tranny, etc.). In my opinion, its better to upgrade the car rather than just the motor.
Regarding the SSI exhaust, it provides an extra 23 hp for about $1,000, which is massive return on investment. Its also an investment that can be removed and resold, as there are lots of people looking for SSI. I'd start there.
11-26-2003 | 01:22 PM
#6
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Motors can be as little as 5k for good ones now, but you'd usually pay more. You might prefer to keep your own tranny; this link makes good reading:
http://www.instant-g.com
Then you need to consider other upgrades that you'd want with that much power- brakes, suspension, wheels, etc are all nice to have. You can see why they are saying go with a newer car. The thing that a new car often won't get you is the speed, though. My '70 with a 3.2 has an 8.2 lbs/ hp power to weight ratio. To beat that with a newer NA porsche you need to buy a GT3. Needless to say I'm a fan of the engine swap, but it does take a significant comitment. Maybe the engine swap starts to make sense if you've got 10K+ or so? Enough to put in a good 3.6, sell your current motor, and still have money left over for other upgrades? Something like that.
http://www.instant-g.com
Then you need to consider other upgrades that you'd want with that much power- brakes, suspension, wheels, etc are all nice to have. You can see why they are saying go with a newer car. The thing that a new car often won't get you is the speed, though. My '70 with a 3.2 has an 8.2 lbs/ hp power to weight ratio. To beat that with a newer NA porsche you need to buy a GT3. Needless to say I'm a fan of the engine swap, but it does take a significant comitment. Maybe the engine swap starts to make sense if you've got 10K+ or so? Enough to put in a good 3.6, sell your current motor, and still have money left over for other upgrades? Something like that.
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11-27-2003 | 04:29 AM
#8
Racer
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 314
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From: SF Bay, California
Ken:
Jason is right on the money. SSI should wake the car up significantly.
If you want to go a bit further, once your engine is out to get to the transmission for rebuild, you may consider putting the 964 cams. There is also places that sell CIS speed parts, e.g. S-CAR-GO in San Rafael, CA. Look them up on the web.
As others have said, with that mileage it would be a shame to throw the engine out. Also, how much power do you really need? If you need somethin faster, get another car.
George
Jason is right on the money. SSI should wake the car up significantly.
If you want to go a bit further, once your engine is out to get to the transmission for rebuild, you may consider putting the 964 cams. There is also places that sell CIS speed parts, e.g. S-CAR-GO in San Rafael, CA. Look them up on the web.
As others have said, with that mileage it would be a shame to throw the engine out. Also, how much power do you really need? If you need somethin faster, get another car.
George
